March 3, 2008 - Texas Facts #17: State Tourism
Have you been all over your state? What excites the attention of outsiders that gets ‘em hankerin’ for a visit? Have you visited the important landmark(s) thereof? Well, though I’ve been many places in Texas I’ve not been to near how many it has to offer (the one draw back to living in the second largest state in the nation). And since there are so many tourist attractions, etc., I’m just going to put a + sign by the ones I’ve been to and nothing by the ones I haven’t.
When the tourists come to Texas, where do they go? If they’re lucky they take a year long vacation and visit every place mentioned below (something I have not even come close to accomplishing) if that’s even possible. I’ve listed them by category and in alphabetical order by city/town/park/land... It took a while and I’m pretty sure they’re not all here.
Texas Travel Trails
Forts Trail – Abilene
Tropical Trail – Corpus Christi
Lakes Trail – Dallas
Mountain Trail – El Paso
Independence Trail – Houston
Plains Trail – Lubbock
Pecos Trail – Odessa
Hill Country Trail – San Antonio
Forest Trail – Tyler
Brazos Trail – Waco
Amusements
Abilene Zoological Gardens and Discovery Center – Abilene
+Ballpark in Arlington – Arlington
Six Flags Over Texas Hurricane Harbor – Arlington
Wet ‘N Wild – Arlington
+National Wildflower Research Center – Austin
+Zilker Park – Austin
Alamo Village – Brackettville
Gladys Porter Zoo – Brownsville
Texas Safari – Clifton
Natural Bride Wildlife Ranch – Comal
+Texas State Aquarium – Corpus Christi
Dallas Aquarium – Dallas
Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden – Dallas
Dallas Civic Garden Center – Dallas
Dallas Zoo – Dallas
Fair Park – Dallas
Reunion Arena – Dallas
Billy Bob’s Texas – Fort Worth
Fort Worth Botanic Garden – Fort Worth
Fort Worth Water Gardens – Fort Worth
Fort Worth Zoo – Fort Worth
Moody Gardens – Galveston
Sea-Arama Marineworld – Galveston
+Fossil Rim Wildlife Center – Glen Rose
International Wildlife Park – Grand Prairie
+Astrodome – Houston
Astroworld – Houston (is now a was)
Fame City – Houston
Houston Zoological Gardens – Houston
+Minute-Maid Park – Houston
+Reliant Stadium – Houston
The Summit – Houston
Waterworld – Houston
Texas Stadium – Irving
Schlitterbahn – New Braunfels
Alamodome – San Antonio
+River Walk – San Antonio
San Antonio Botanical Garden – San Antonio
+San Antonio Zoo – San Antonio
+Sea World of Texas – San Antonio
+Six Flags Fiesta Texas – San Antonio
Splashtown – San Antonio
Splashtown USA – Spring
Museums
Museum of the Big Bend – Alpine
(+ We're going next month) American Quarter Horse Heritage Center & Museum – Amarillo
Cadillac Ranch – Amarillo
+Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum – Austin
Frontier Times Museum – Bandera
Texas Energy Museum – Beaumont
Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum – Canyon
Corpus Christi Museum of Science and History – Corpus Christi
+George Herbert Walker Bush Library and Museum – College Station
Age of Steam Railroad Museum – Dallas
Biblical Arts Center – Dallas
Dallas Museum of Art – Dallas
Dallas Museum of Natural History – Dallas
Frontiers of Flight Museum – Dallas
International Museum of Culture – Dallas
The Science Place – Dallas
American Airpower Heritage Museum – Midland
Anne Riggs Hotel Museum – Fort Stockton
Amon Carter Museum – Fort Worth
Cattleman’s Museum – Fort Worth
Fort Worth Museum off Science and History – Fort Worth
Kimbell Art Museum – Fort Worth
+McDonald Observatory – Fort Davis
Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth – Fort Worth
Railroad Museum/Center for Transportation and Commerce – Galveston
Depot Museum – Henderson
Children’s Museum of Houston – Houston
Houston Museum of Fine Arts – Houston
+Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center – Houston
Museum of Natural Science – Houston
Sam Houston Memorial Museum – Huntsville
Cowboy Artists of America Museum – Kerrville
East Texas Oil Museum – Kilgore
King Ranch – Kingsville
Gregg County Historical Museum – Longview
National Ranching Heritage Center – Lubbock
McAllen International Museum – McAllen
Museum of the Southwest – Midland
Permian Basin Petroleum Museum – Midland
+Hummel Museum – New Braunfels
Presidential Museum – Odessa
Stark museum of Art – Orange
West of the Pecos Museum and Park – Pecos
Texas Maritime Museum – Rockport
Hertzberg Circus Museum – San Antonio
Institute of Texan Cultures – San Antonio
Marion Koogler McNay Art Museum – San Antonio
Red River Historical Museum – Sherman
San Antonio Museum of Art – San Antonio
+Witte Museum – San Antonio
Texas Ranger Museum & Hall of Fame – Waco
Historic Sites
Caddoan Mounds State Historical Park – Alto
Fanthorp Inn State Historical Park – Anderson
Governor’s Mansion – Austin
+Texas State Capitol – Austin
Old Tascosa – Boys Ranch
Palo Alto Battlefield National Historic Site – Brownsville
Buffalo Gap Historic Village – Buffalo Gap
Landmark Inn State Historical Park – Castroville
+USS Lexington – Corpus Christi
Pioneer Village – Corsicana
Seminole Canton State Historical Park – Comstock
Old City Park – Dallas
Texas School Book Depository – Dallas
San Jacinto Battleground State Historical Park – Deer Park
Eisenhower Birthplace State Historical Park – Denison
Chamizal National memorial – El Paso
Hueco Tanks State Historical Park – El Paso
Magoffin Home State historical Park – El Pas
oFannin Battleground State Historical Park – Fannin
Fort Worth Stockyards – Fort Worth
Sundance Square – Fort Worth
Admiral Nimitz Museum and Historical Center – Fredericksburg
Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument – Fritch
Fulton Mansion State Historical Park – Fulton
Bishop’s Palace – Galveston
The Strand – Galveston
Goliad State Historical Park – Goliad
Presidio La Bahia – Goliad
Acton State Historical Park – Granbury
Bayou Bend – Houston
Indianola – Indianola
Monument Hill & Kreische Brewery State Historical Parks – La Grange
Lubbock Lake Landmark State Historical Park – Lubbock
Highlands Mansion – Marlin
Starr Family State historical Park – Marshall
Confederate Reunion Grounds State Historical Park – Mexia
Nacogdoches – Nacogdoches
Lipantitlan State Historical Park – Orange Grove
Sam Bell Maxey House State Historical Park – Paris
Port Isabel Lighthouse State Historical Par – Port Isabel
Governor Hogg Shrine State Historical Park – Quitman
Jim Hogg State Historical Park – Rusk
Texas State Railroad State Historical Park – Rusk/Palestine State Park
Sabine Pass Battleground State Historical Park – Sabine Pass
Jose Antonio Navarro State Historical Park – San Antonio
La Villita – San Antonio
Stephen F. Austin State Historical Park – San Felipe
Sebastopol State Historical Park – Seguin
Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park – Stonewall
Lyndon B. Johnson State Historical Park – Stonewall
Study Butte – Study Butte
Terlingua – Terlingua
Thurber – Thurber
+Washington-on-the-Brazos State Historical Park – Washington
Varner-Hogg Plantation State Historical Park – West Columbia
Waxahachie – Waxahachie
Historic Forts
Fort Bliss – El Paso
+Fort Davis – Fort Davis National Historic Site
Fort Griffin – Fort Griffin State Historical Park
Fort Lancaster – Fort Lancaster State Historical Park
Fort Leaton – Fort Leaton State Historical Park
Fort McKavett – Fort McKavett State Historical Park
Fort Richardson – Fort Richardson State Historical Park
+Old Fort Parker – Groesbeck
Fort Sam Houston – San Antonio
Fort Concho – San Angelo
Historic Missions
Mission Corpus Christi – El Paso
Mission Espiritu Santo – Goliad State Historical Park
Mission Tejas – Mission Tejas State Historical
The Alamo – San Antonio
Mission Concepcion – San Antonio Missions National Historical Park
Mission Espada – San Antonio Missions National Historical Park
Mission San Jose – San Antonio Missions National Historical Park
Mission San Juan – San Antonio Missions National Historical Park
Unique Natural Features
Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge – Alamo
Whooping Cranes – Aransas National Wildlife Refuge
+Congress Avenue Bridge Bat Colony – Austin
Boquillas Canton – Big Bend National Park
Persimmon Gap – Big Bend National Park
+Rio Grande – Big Bend National park
Big Bed Mosquitofish – Big Bed National Park/Rio Grande Village
Caddo Lake – Caddo Lake
Chihuahuan Desert – Cornudas
Caprock Cantons – Caprock Canyons State Park
+Dinosaur Tracks – Dinosaur Valley State Park
Attwater Prairie chicken National Wildlife Refuge – Eagle Lake
+Enchanted Rock – Enchanted Rock State Natural Area
Texas Longhorn – Fort Griffin State Historical Park
Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge – Fort Worth
The Big Tree – Goose Island State Park
The Bowl – Guadalupe Mountain National Park
Capitan Reef – Guadalupe Mountains National Park
El Capitan – Guadalupe Mountain National Park
Guadalupe Mountains – Guadalupe Mountains National Park
McKittrick Canyon – Guadalupe Mountains National Park
Gulf of Mexico
Catfish Creek – Gus Engeling Wildlife Management Area
Hueco Tanks – Hueco Tanks State Historical Park
Sand Dunes – Monahans Sandhills State Park
Muleshoe National Wildlife Refuge – Muleshoe
Odessa Meteor Crater – Odessa
Padre Island – Padre Island National Seashore
Palo Duro Canyon – Palo Duro Canyon State Park
Salt Flats – Salt Flat
Sea Rim Marsh – Sea Rim State Park
Lost Maples State Natural Area – Vanderpool
Caverns
Cascade Caverns – Boerne
Cave Without a Name – Boerne
Inner Space Cavern – Georgetown
Longhorn Cavern – Longhorn Cavern State park
Natural Bridge Caverns – San Antonio
+Wonder Cave – San Marcos
Caverns of Sonora – Sonora
What is the most visited and why?
The Alamo (that should come as no surprise). Why? Um, I’ll let you guess (until I can think clearly again and write something better about it).
Have you ever been there? If so, how was it?
Yeah! And it is awesome, as always (I’ve been several times).
Where do you go for vacation? Do you have an annual trip?
No annual trip for us. We just save and save until we have enough for the next big trip, i.e. vacation, that we want to take and then we go! I love road trips!
Write at least a paragraph about your experience or a memorable time when vacationing.
Staying in west Texas (literally out west, not the town) is something my whole family loves. Our place to camp out (yes, in a tent) is Fort Davis. Though we’ve actually only been a few times it captured our hearts immediately. The last time we made a big trip to that specific area we stayed for 5 days. Our campsite was just perfect. See, there’s a little wildlife reservation building that is run by volunteers every summer and it was just up a little hill from our camp. The particular couple that was running it that week were stupendous! They helped to make our trip so very enjoyable. We visited Fort Davis and took the “Talking Walls” tour.
One day we drove out to Big Bend National Park. It was a rather long drive but so much fun. Before we stopped for lunch we got out next to the Rio Grande to dip our toes in. We actually did more than that, Dad helped Josie, Sarah, and I to wade across just so we could step into Mexico for a moment. Felicity was still a wee little thing but she decided she wanted to go too. Of course, the river was a little stronger than she at the time and Mom had to reach out and grab her before she got swept to the Gulf.
The last night we were there we spent at the Indian Lodge: a very nice little hotel just outside of town. It turned out to be a very good thing indeed ‘cause that night the floodgates were opened! We would’ve been drenched had we stayed in our tent.
It was definitely a memorable trip.
Sadly, the picture I would like to post from this trip is… packed, along with nearly everything else. I may add it some other time, we’ll see.
If you vacation or visit anywhere (museums, amusement parks, campsites, beaches, historical sites), where would it be and why?
I dunno, pretty much anywhere in Texas ‘ll do for me. *bigcheesygrin*
